Book of Common Prayer
95 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord.
Let us give a loud shout to the Rock who saves us.
2 Let us come to him and give him thanks.
Let us praise him with music and song.
3 The Lord is the great God.
He is the greatest King.
He rules over all the gods.
4 He owns the deepest parts of the earth.
The mountain peaks belong to him.
5 The ocean is his, because he made it.
He formed the dry land with his hands.
6 Come, let us bow down and worship him.
Let us fall on our knees in front of the Lord our Maker.
7 He is our God.
We are the sheep belonging to his flock.
We are the people he takes good care of.
If only you would listen to his voice today.
8 He says, “Don’t be stubborn as you were at Meribah.
Don’t be stubborn as you were that day at Massah in the desert.
9 There your people of long ago really tested me.
They did it even though they had seen what I had done for them.
10 For 40 years I was angry with them.
I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray.
They do not know how I want them to live.’
11 So when I was angry, I made a promise.
I said, ‘They will never enjoy the rest I planned for them.’ ”
For the director of music. According to mahalath leannoth. A song. A psalm of the Sons of Korah. A maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
88 Lord, you are the God who saves me.
Day and night I cry out to you.
2 Please hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my cry for help.
3 I have so many troubles
I’m about to die.
4 People think my life is over.
I’m like someone who doesn’t have any strength.
5 People treat me as if I were dead.
I’m like those who have been killed and are now in the grave.
You don’t even remember them anymore.
They are cut off from your care.
6 It’s as if you have put me deep down in the grave.
It’s as if you have put me in that deep, dark place.
7 Your great anger lies heavy on me.
All the waves of your anger have crashed over me.
8 You have taken my closest friends away from me.
You have made me sickening to them.
I feel trapped and can’t escape.
9 I’m crying so much I can’t see very well.
Lord, I call out to you every day.
I lift up my hands to you in prayer.
10 Do you do wonderful things for those who are dead?
Do their spirits rise up and praise you?
11 Do those who are dead speak about your love?
Do those who are in the grave tell how faithful you are?
12 Are your wonderful deeds known in that dark place?
Are your holy acts known in that land where the dead are forgotten?
13 Lord, I cry out to you for help.
In the morning I pray to you.
14 Lord, why do you say no to me?
Why do you turn your face away from me?
15 I’ve been in pain ever since I was young.
I’ve been close to death.
You have made me suffer terrible things.
I have lost all hope.
16 Your great anger has swept over me.
Your terrors have destroyed me.
17 All day long they surround me like a flood.
They have closed in all around me.
18 You have taken my friends and neighbors away from me.
Darkness is my closest friend.
91 Whoever rests in the shadow of the Most High God
will be kept safe by the Mighty One.
2 I will say about the Lord,
“He is my place of safety.
He is like a fort to me.
He is my God. I trust in him.”
3 He will certainly save you from hidden traps
and from deadly sickness.
4 He will cover you with his wings.
Under the feathers of his wings you will find safety.
He is faithful. He will keep you safe like a shield or a tower.
5 You won’t have to be afraid of the terrors that come during the night.
You won’t have to fear the arrows that come at you during the day.
6 You won’t have to be afraid of the sickness that attacks in the darkness.
You won’t have to fear the plague that destroys at noon.
7 A thousand may fall dead at your side.
Ten thousand may fall near your right hand.
But no harm will come to you.
8 You will see with your own eyes
how God punishes sinful people.
9 Suppose you say, “The Lord is the one who keeps me safe.”
Suppose you let the Most High God be like a home to you.
10 Then no harm will come to you.
No terrible plague will come near your tent.
11 The Lord will command his angels
to take good care of you.
12 They will lift you up in their hands.
Then you won’t trip over a stone.
13 You will walk on lions and cobras.
You will crush mighty lions and poisonous snakes.
14 The Lord says, “I will save the one who loves me.
I will keep him safe, because he trusts in me.
15 He will call out to me, and I will answer him.
I will be with him in times of trouble.
I will save him and honor him.
16 I will give him a long and full life.
I will save him.”
A psalm. A song for the Sabbath day.
92 Lord, it is good to praise you.
Most High God, it is good to make music to honor you.
2 It is good to sing every morning about your love.
It is good to sing every night about how faithful you are.
3 I sing about it to the music of the lyre that has ten strings.
I sing about it to the music of the harp.
4 Lord, you make me glad by your deeds.
I sing for joy about what you have done.
5 Lord, how great are the things you do!
How wise your thoughts are!
6 Here is something that people without sense don’t know.
Here is what foolish people don’t understand.
7 Those who are evil spring up like grass.
Those who do wrong succeed.
But they will be destroyed forever.
8 But Lord, you are honored forever.
9 Lord, your enemies will certainly die.
All those who do evil will be scattered.
10 You have made me as strong as a wild ox.
You have poured the finest olive oil on me.
11 I’ve seen my evil enemies destroyed.
I’ve heard that they have lost the battle.
12 Those who do what is right will grow like a palm tree.
They will grow strong like a cedar tree in Lebanon.
13 Their roots will be firm in the house of the Lord.
They will grow strong and healthy in the courtyards of our God.
14 When they get old, they will still bear fruit.
Like young trees they will stay fresh and strong.
15 They will say to everyone, “The Lord is honest.
He is my Rock, and there is no evil in him.”
The Lord’s People Have Broken His Covenant
11 A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. The Lord said, 2 “Listen to the terms of the covenant I made with my people of long ago. Tell Judah the terms still apply to them. Tell those who live in Jerusalem that they must obey them too. 3 I am the Lord, the God of Israel. So let the people know what I want them to do. Here is what I want you to tell them. ‘May the person who does not obey the terms of the covenant be under my curse. 4 I gave those terms to your people of long ago. That was when I brought them out of Egypt. I saved them out of that furnace that melts down iron and makes it pure.’ I said, ‘Obey me. Do everything I command you to do. Then you will be my people. And I will be your God. 5 I raised my hand and made a promise to your people of long ago. I promised them I would give them a land that had plenty of milk and honey.’ It is the land you own today. I kept my promise.”
I replied, “Amen, Lord.”
6 The Lord said to me, “Here is what I want you to announce in the towns of Judah. Say it also in the streets of Jerusalem. Tell the people, ‘Listen to the terms of my covenant. Obey them. 7 Long ago I brought your people up from Egypt. From that time until today, I warned them again and again. I said, “Obey me.” 8 But they did not listen. They did not pay any attention to me. Instead, they did what their stubborn and evil hearts wanted them to do. So I brought down on them all the curses of the covenant. I commanded them to obey it. But they refused.’ ”
14 “Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not make any appeal or request for them. They will call out to me when they are in trouble. But I will not listen to them.
15 “I love the people of Judah.
But they are working out their evil plans along with many others.
So what are they doing in my temple?
Can meat that is offered to me keep me from punishing you?
When you do evil things, you get a lot of pleasure from them.”
16 People of Judah, the Lord once called you a healthy olive tree.
He thought its fruit was beautiful.
But now he will come with the roar of a mighty storm.
He will set the tree on fire.
And its branches will be broken.
17 The Lord who rules over all planted you. But now he has ordered your enemies to destroy you. The people of Israel and Judah have both done what is evil. They have made the Lord very angry by burning incense to Baal.
Jeremiah’s Enemies Make Evil Plans Against Him
18 The Lord told me about the evil plans of my enemies. That’s how I knew about them. He showed me what they were doing. 19 I had been like a gentle lamb led off to be killed. I didn’t realize they had made plans against me. They had said,
“Let’s destroy the tree and its fruit.
Let’s take away his life.
Then his name won’t be remembered anymore.”
20 But Lord, you rule over all.
You always judge fairly.
You test people’s hearts and minds.
So pay them back for what they’ve done.
I’ve committed my cause to you.
Living a New Life in Christ
6 What should we say then? Should we keep on sinning so that God’s grace can increase? 2 Not at all! As far as sin is concerned, we are dead. So how can we keep on sinning? 3 All of us were baptized into Christ Jesus. Don’t you know that we were baptized into his death? 4 By being baptized, we were buried with Christ into his death. Christ has been raised from the dead by the Father’s glory. And like Christ we also can live a new life.
5 By being baptized, we have been joined with him in a death like his. So we will certainly also be joined with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that what we used to be was nailed to the cross with him. That happened so our bodies that were ruled by sin would lose their power. So we are no longer slaves of sin. 7 That’s because those who have died have been set free from sin.
8 We died with Christ. So we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ was raised from the dead and will never die again. Death doesn’t control him anymore. 10 When he died, he died once and for all time. He did this to break the power of sin. Now that he lives, he lives in the power of God.
11 In the same way, consider yourselves to be dead as far as sin is concerned. Now you believe in Christ Jesus. So consider yourselves to be alive as far as God is concerned.
33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s children. We have never been slaves of anyone. So how can you say that we will be set free?”
34 Jesus replied, “What I’m about to tell you is true. Everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave has no lasting place in the family. But a son belongs to the family forever. 36 So if the Son of Man sets you free, you will really be free. 37 I know that you are Abraham’s children. But you are looking for a way to kill me. You have no room for my word. 38 I am telling you what I saw when I was with my Father. You are doing what you have heard from your father.”
39 “Abraham is our father,” they answered.
Jesus said, “Are you really Abraham’s children? If you are, you will do what Abraham did. 40 But you are looking for a way to kill me. I am a man who has told you the truth I heard from God. Abraham didn’t do the things you want to do. 41 You are doing what your own father does.”
“We have the right to claim to be God’s children,” they objected. “The only Father we have is God himself.”
42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me. I have come here from God. I have not come on my own. God sent me. 43 Why aren’t my words clear to you? Because you can’t really hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil. You want to obey your father’s wishes. From the beginning, the devil was a murderer. He has never obeyed the truth. There is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his natural language. He does this because he is a liar. He is the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you don’t believe me! 46 Can any of you prove I am guilty of sinning? Am I not telling the truth? Then why don’t you believe me? 47 Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you don’t hear is that you don’t belong to God.”
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